Take Action!
GreenCAPE provides information about pesticides and a variety of other environmental threats. Although we do not engage in any political activities such as lobbying, we do feel that people have the right to make their voices heard. We hope the following links and information will make that process easier.
Donations in any amount urgently needed. 100% tax deductible.
Contact Your Elected Officials
League of Conservation Voters Education Fund- Dedicated to unleashing the power within all of us to make a difference for the environment.
Congress.org- Easy e-mail access to your elected Federal and State officials plus a comprehensive list of issues, organized by category.
Mass.gov- Official Commonwealth of Massachusetts website. Contact links plus environmental info.
Write a letter to the Editor
The Cape Cod Times on-line submission
The Boston Globe on-line submission
.....If you feel that you don't know enough yet,
Get More Information
League of Conservation Voters Keeps track of legislators' environmental voting records.
Read: In Harm's Way: Toxic Threats to Child Development - a report by Greater Boston Physicians for Social Responsibility and Clean Water Fund, May 2000
Read at U.S. EPA pesticide web site - Even a real wonk can get lost here. The "offical" place, so don't expect an organic outlook, but loads of info.
Read: Polluting Our Future: Chemical Pollution in the U.S. that Affects Child Development and Learning, by National Environmental Trust et al.
Go to The United States Geological Survey National Water-Quality Assessment Program- Water, water everywhere, but is it safe to drink?
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More Worthwhile Information
movie to see-- Food, Inc. - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QqQVll-MP3I
The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals by Michael Pollan, 2007
In Defense of Food: an eater's manifesto by Michael Pollan, 2008
Altering Eden - The Feminization of Nature by Deborah Cadbury, Oct. 1999, St. Martin¹s Press
Common Sense Pest Control - Least Toxic Solutions for Your Home, Garden, Pests and Community, by William Olkowski, Sheila Daar, and Helen Olkowski, 1991, Taunton Press
Fateful Harvest: the true story of a small town, a global industry and a toxic secret by Duff Wilson, 2001, Harper Collins
Generations at Risk - Reproductive Health and the Environment by Ted Schettler, M.D., Gina Solomon, M.D., Maria Valenti, and Annette Huddle, 1999, MIT Press
Living Downstream - An Ecologist Looks at Cancer and the Environment by Sandra Steingraber, Ph.D., 1997, Addison-Wesley
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Learn about cancer rates and environmental issues in your town - visit the Massachusetts Health and Environment Information System (Mass HEIS) produced by Silent Spring.
RIGHT OF WAY SPRAYING by NSTAR resumes soon unless you stop it.
Sunday August 8th at 7 pm at Dennis Public Library
KICK-OFF PARTY TO STOP THE SPRAY! You are cordially invited: To CELEBRATE the 2010 NSTAR Spray Delay And to plan a Permanent End to the Use of Toxic Chemicals Above our Water Supply!
When: Sunday, August 8th Where: The Dennis Public Library Off Route 28 in Dennisport (www.dennispubliclibrary.org)
Time: 7-8:30 pm
RSVP: info@greencape.org
Join us for the latest NSTAR update and our coalition¹s progress and plans. Meet our energetic green warriors & HELP US STOP THE JOLLY-NOT-SO-GREEN-GIANT! Toxic persistent pesticides are a dangerous way to manage vegetation!
Light refreshments and beverages will be served~ RSVP requested Hosted by: GreenCAPE Concerned Citizens Against Herbicide Use on Cape Cod Toxics Action Center Green Corps
³What we as the delegation are asking for, and what I think is a very reasonable request, is that if there are other alternatives to spraying, we need to explore them, and we need to give the people exploring those options enough time.² - Senator O¹Leary
http://www.capecodtoday.com/blogs/index.php/2010/03/27/o-leary-requests-one-year-hold-on-nstar?blog=53
FACT SHEETS
Two factsheets to download, read, take action, and pass along:
the long and the short of the NSTAR Plan to Herbicide Cape Cod. The short
version can serve as a flyer (2 sides). The long version includes additional
material and references.
Download NSTAR Sustainable Right of Way factsheet (long version).
Download NSTAR Spraying factsheet/flyer (short version)
Petition by Concerned Citizens Against Herbicide Use on Cape Cod
March update--NSTAR herbicide spraying, Commissioner Soares calls a 30 day moratorium at the request of NSTAR.
Why we're not believing the scientists--
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z4lijvIjpRw Check this out for some easy morning listeningŠ..NSTAR won¹t be using that herbicide but as Dr. Hayes reports‹Atrazine has been used for 48 years all over the world and only recently has its endocrine disrupting effects been reported. Sooo what are we missing with NSTARs fabulous five mixture?
Actions Needed
Details on how to Send a message to MDAR Commissioner Scott Soares . He may be able to call a one year moratorium on spraying for the entire Cape
Commissioner Scott Soares, Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources 251 Causeway Street, Suite 500 Boston, MA 02114-2151 (617)626-1701 Scott.Soares@state.ma.us
Harwich residents attend the public hearing Monday, March 15 and speak! If you can't be there, send information to town hall. Contact the selectmen, town manager, and assistant town manager.
Tell 10 friends about the NStar plan and have them tell 10 friends, and so on. Give them GreenCAPE factsheetsdownload from the top of this page.
More Actions Needed:
1. Contact your local officials. Give them a petition to sign.
2. Circulate the petition
3. Contact NSTAR Community Relations, jeffrey.luce@nstar.com
Please call NSTAR, Jeffrey Luce, NSTAR Community Relations, 508-957-4502,
email jeffrey.luce@nstar.com (see fact sheet) and request a non-toxic
vegetation management plan for all of Cape Cod. Only YOU can write
the end of this story by getting actively involved in your town to make
it happen.
Questions? Comments? Contact us at info@GreenCAPE.org
download and print this pdf document. Contact Jared at jaredatthecape@yahoo.com
for more information. JaredCollins.com text/call 508.246.5791
tinyurl.com/ForThoseConcerned
Send petitions to Greencape, P.O. Box 631, West Barnstable, MA 02668
8/19/09 Concerned Citizens Against Herbicide Use on Cape Cod www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=109138248696
8/17/09 NSTAR will begin mechanical vegetation removal today.
Garlon 4 (added to list of pesicides to be used. It was not mentioned
at the meeting.
8/14/09 update. Sen O'Leary, Rep. Peake and Turner ask for a 30 day delay.
NSTAR announces vegetation management spraying along right of way electrical electrical transmission towers on the outer Cape:
Over 100 people attended a forum on Wednesday, August 12, 2009 at Nauset Regional High School auditorium, scheduled for 90 minutes. There were 4 representatives from Nstar; 3 from the Mass. Dept. of Agricultural Resources, including Commissioner Scott Soares; Senator Rob O'Leary, Rep. Sarah Peake, Rep. Cleon Turner; moderator Patrick Cassidy of the Cape Cod Times, and one microphone on the podium. The lack of microphones was keenly felt by all, and this humble summary is far from complete.
The meeting began with slide presentations by Nstar and MDAR, empasizing that many Federal and state regulations must be met in order to do IVM (integrated vegetation managment) which includes chemical, mechanical, and natural methods. 10 feet on either side of the electrical poles must be clear for access to be sure that towers will not come down due to trees which can reach 60 feet high. An Eastham selectwoman read a strongly worded statement against the spraying.
Though the Nstar presenter mentioned Roundup, also mentioned were Arsenal, KreniteS, Accord and Escort.
Some of the points brought up by the audience:
1. Unlike most other regions of Massachusetts, here on the Cape we have
a sole-source aquifer (WE LIVE OVER OUR ONLY WATER SOURCE, with
sandy, porous soil above it.)
2. The problem of pesticide drift in our ever present wind includes damage
to people and honeybees.
3. Could the MDAR model the damage without making the top soil layer so
thick. This is not the actual conditions near the electrical towers.
4. We have been told in the past that pesticides were safe--ie, DDT, dioxin.
In general, the audience was asking Nstar to look at other creative ways to handle the vegetation problem. Not all questions were answered and the audience was invited to stay and ask questions privately. An Nstar representative told one questioner that the spraying was already scheduled for this coming Monday, August 17.
As a result on August 13th, Sen. O'Leary, Rep. Peake and Rep. Turner asked Nstar for a 30 day delay. Read the press release from Sen. O'Leary's office (opens in pdf format). This request has no legal standing--it must come from the town of Eastham or another public entity.
http://www.mass.gov/agr/pesticides/rightofway/Sensitive_Area_Materials.htm (note the supplemental labeling for Roundup PRO by Monsanto)
Rep. Sarah Peake By phone: (617) 722-2210, (508) 487-5694
E-mail: rep.sarahpeake@hou.state.ma.us
7 Center Street, Provincetown, MA 02657
Room 473F, State House Boston, MA 02133
Sen. Rob O'Leary State House Room 511B Boston, MA 02133
Telephone: (617) 722-1570 Fax: (617) 722-1271
E-Mail: Robert.O'Leary@state.ma.us
Commissioner Scott Soares, Massachusetts Department of Agricultural
Resources
251 Causeway Street, Suite 500 Boston, MA 02114-2151
(617)626-1701
Scott.Soares@state.ma.us
Chemical Details:
NSTAR Pesticides & additions data / proposed Eastham ROW spraying
Trade names in bold; a.i. in parentheses is the “active
ingredient”
note--most are pdf documents that will open in Adobe Acrobat Reader.
Accord (a.i.=glyphosate) www.mass.gov/agr/pesticides/rightofway/docs/Glyphosate2005.pdf
Label: www.cdms.net/LDat/ld4TL015.pdf
MSDS: www.cdms.net/LDat/mp4TL003.pdf
Arsenal (a.i=imazapyr) www.mass.gov/agr/pesticides/rightofway/docs/Imazapyr2005.pdf
Label: www.cdms.net/LDat/ld746002.pdf
MSDS: www.cdms.net/LDat/mp746004.pdf
Escort (a.i.=metsulfuron methyl) www.mass.gov/agr/pesticides/rightofway/docs/Metsulfuron_Methyl2005.pdf
Label: www.dupont.com/ag/us/prodinfo/prodsearch/information/H65216.pdf
MSDS: msds.dupont.com/msds/pdfs/EN/PEN_09004a2f80125c7a.pdf
Pyridine (garlon 4) (a.i.=triclopyr)
Organochlorine class of pesticides and a suspected carcinogen and mutagen
which has been detected in groundwater and is toxic to fish. Linked to
mammary and adrenal tumors.
www.mass.gov/agr/pesticides/rightofway/docs/triclopyr2005.pdf
Label: www.cdms.net/ldat/ld0B0013.pdf
Supplemental Label: www.cdms.net/ldat/ld0B0000.pdf
MSDS: www.cdms.net/ldat/mp0B0014.pdf
Krenite (a.i.=fosamine ammonium) www.mass.gov/agr/pesticides/rightofway/docs/Fosamine_Ammonium2005.pdf
Label: www.dupont.com/ag/us/prodinfo/prodsearch/information/H65191.pdf
MSDS: msds.dupont.com/msds/pdfs/EN/PEN_09004a2f80006da5.pdf
41-A Drift Retardant
www.montereychemical.com/label/Sanag%2041-A.pdf
Arborchem Clean-Cut Surfactant
Label www.arborchem.com/images/products/arborch_cleancut.gif
MSDS page 1 www.arborchem.com/images/products/arborch_cleancut_msdsp1.gif
MSDS page 2 www.arborchem.com/images/products/arborch_cleancut_msdsp2.gif
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Download/view GreenCAPE letter to
Eastham officials June 16, 2009
Download/view GreenCAPE letter
to Rep. Peake and Sen. O'Leary Aug 8, 2009